Monday, 14 May 2012

Congratulations Irine

WGM Irine Sukandar was the surprise winner of the 2012 Asian Continental Women's Championship which has just finished in Ho Chi Min City, Vietnam. She started the event seeded 19th, but managed to hang on to the lead until a loss in the second last round put her half a point behind Mary Ann Gomes. However Gomes lost her final round game while Sukandar scored the point she need to finish outright first, on 7/9.
Not only will this victory be a popular one in Indonesia, but also here in Australia. After scoring an IM norm at the Queenstown International earlier this year, Sukandar returned to play in both the O2C Doeberl Cup and the Sydney International Open. She was a popular visitor at both events, and I hope she is able to return for next years events (along with any other female players looking for that extra boost in performance!)